


I Hear In Whispers

by orphan_account



Category: Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fingerfucking, In Public, Light Dom/sub, Love Confessions, Masturbation, Vaginal Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-11
Updated: 2013-10-11
Packaged: 2017-12-29 03:01:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1000077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>[Season two] Sometimes the hardest thing you have to do is choose between two men you love, but Damon makes a very convincing argument in his favor.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Hear In Whispers

When he saw her in that purple dress, the first thing that came to his mind was how much he wanted to...scandalize her. Okay, it was the second thing. Truthfully, the first was how beautiful the girl looked, brown hair tumbling over her naked shoulders, silky fabric cinched to show her small waist and hug her curves, an almost carefree smile on her face as she entered the Lockwoods’ party, her usual date nowhere in sight. Damon didn't know how his kid brother could leave such a pretty thing by herself, but he didn't care, he might end up with Elena all to himself for the evening. He gulped down the rest of his bourbon at the makeshift bar, then headed across the room, weaving between the crowds of people with ease until he could get up behind Elena, run his fingertips ever so lightly against the bare skin of her left shoulder.

She jumped and immediately turned, surprise on her face, though it soon faded into something that was less and more all at the same time. She was actually happy to see Damon at the party, dressed up in a fine black suit, and Elena had to remind herself not to stare at the flesh where his neck met his chest, the first three buttons of his shirt undone. He looked...like a perfect gentleman and probably fooled every single person at the party. Except her. "You...look good," the brunette said, not wanting to boost the man's ego _too_ much.

The compliment was returned with a slight smile as he turned, reaching out to quickly grab two champagne flutes. Damon handed one over to her and a sigh left his lips. "You don't look so bad either. Though...I'm surprised you're not hanging from Stefan's arm. It seems dangerous to let a pretty thing like you come into a den of wolves...and  _v_ _ampires_ ," he whispered the word, then went back to his same nonchalant baritone, "alone." He drank about half of the liquid in his glass in the next few seconds, eyes flicking around the party, looking at all the mingling people, hearing the chit-chat about normalcy and, if he listened just right, at least one city official flirting with a girl that he was twice the age of. Oh, Mystic Falls, how he loved you.

"It looks like you're the only one of your kind here, Damon."

He didn't have to glance back to know she was rolling her eyes at him. "Yes, I'm sure Stefan is off performing some noble deed like saving a little girl's kitten from a tree. Hopefully he doesn't eat it." Damon didn't smile at her, but raised his brows in amusement, once again taking in Elena's form when she turned her head away from him. If he pulled her into a dark corner, he could-- The music picked up for the next song and she poked him in the chest firmly, pulling him back out of his little fantasy world and into reality.

"Are you going to ask me for a dance, Mr. Salvatore?" It was innocent enough and she couldn't imagine him turning down the request, after all, the last time they had danced at Miss Mystic Falls, he seemed to enjoy it. At least, that's what she thought she was reading from the crinkle of his knowing eyes. She waited for a silent moment between them, and he didn't say yes directly, instead he smirked and gave a semblance of a bow. She smiled in return and lifted her glass to her lips, quickly downing the sweet liquid, then moving to take Damon's still half-full flute, setting them on a table and out of the way before she gently dragged him off to the dancefloor.

In the middle of the mass of couples, he put his hand to her hip, giving a squeeze while her own went to his shoulder, petting the soft material of his jacket. He entwined their fingers and began to move slowly to the music, his eyes never leaving hers, though Elena blushed just a bit and glanced past him at the other people surrounding them. If Damon was Stefan, he would have complimented her, telling her how beautiful she looked tonight and then she probably would have leaned in and kissed him. But he wasn't his brother, and instead his hand slid from her hip to her lower back, pulling her lean body in closer.

" _Damon_...," she said half-heartedly, trying to sound annoyed. It didn't work well, that was obvious by the way he smirked.

"Yes, Elena?"

"Just because Stefan isn't--"

"Ah-ah. No talking of other men while we're together."

She blinked and didn't know what to say to that, so Elena relaxed with a deep breath and slid her hand down to his unmoving chest, over the heart that used to beat a century and a half ago. His eyes flickered and she wondered if it excited him--no, she _knew_ he loved it, having her pressed up against him, her breath warm on his lips till she turned her head and swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat.

Time passed quickly and Elena hadn't realized the song was over until Damon was pulling away from her, bringing her delicate hand to his lips and planting a kiss against the skin. His smile seemed to be fond, but before she could speak a word in response to his actions, he had disappeared into the crowd. She didn't know why, really, but she was following after him as quickly and as carefully as she could in the next moment, looking about for any peek of dark hair and a broad back. She probably should have went to find Caroline and Bonnie, but instead she was chasing after Damon--arrogant, sarcastic, _alluring_ Damon. Maybe it was what she had seen on his face once the music had stopped. Maybe she wanted to see that flicker of sweetness again.

She entered room after room and knew that there were just a few people in the mass trying to get her attention, pull her in for a conversation, probably ask how she was doing lately, but she was _hunting_. It was different than usual. She was used to Damon so easily being there, but now he seemed to be nowhere at all and so out of reach. Elena found herself climbing a staircase, lips fallen open as her eyes flicked back and forth in the dim light of the hallway, and once she had reached the top, she stood tall and feebly called out his name. If he was there, he would hear. She knew he would.

But after a few moments without a reply of any sort, the girl gingerly stepped left, passing morose paintings of landscapes and portraits of people with blank expressions and empty eyes. She came to the end of the hall and looked to one of the closed doors, grabbing the knob and bracing herself to open it. An arm was suddenly around her waist from behind, a hand across her mouth to muffle her sounds of panic, and she was being pulled into an empty room. By the feel of the silver and lapis lazuli ring against her lips, it was obvious it was Damon--though a part of her also wished for Stefan. But no, she turned her face and there the elder Salvatore was, smirking down at her and looking like the cat who just caught the canary. Elena couldn’t help but swallow timidly.

“Looks like your persistence has paid off, Elena.” His blue eyes were focused on the shape of her lips, the way they opened when he ran his thumb possessively over them like she was his to kiss and hold. He knew she wasn’t and yet she didn’t fight his touch at all, she...pushed back into him as his other hand slid lower, over the smooth material of her dress, down and down until he was touching the flesh of her thigh where the purple silk ended. “You’re quite the little huntress. Tracking your prey...”

She tried not to shiver, but it was impossible to hold something like that back with Damon who spoke and moved with eroticism like it was absolutely normal. “You’re the one who...who ran.” This was another game to him, Elena knew it, and soon enough he would be disappearing again like always. But as the seconds ticked by and his hand inched up her leg, rucking the material of her dress, it became obvious this was actually much, much more. “Damon--”

“If you didn’t want this, why did you come after me?”

Elena didn’t have an answer, because maybe this really was what she had been expecting deep inside, packed under her denial of her feelings for the vampire, her boyfriend’s brother. This was wrong, this was so wrong and there was guilt slipping into her heart like a stake, but she couldn’t stop him. What good would it do? She would always remember the feeling of his hands on her body, how right it seemed. Elena swallowed and said his name again, but softer this time.

“I know,” he whispered in reply, like his name was an actual answer, lips moving against the shell of her ear after he pushed a few strands of her hair back. Damon petted her, kissed her, the line of her jaw and the pale column of her neck as his fingers found their way between her legs, rubbing her against the cotton of her underwear and eliciting a noise he could only describe as a whimper. He thought it rather...cute, how she could be so extraordinarily gorgeous on top, and just your average teenager underneath. But she wasn’t average to him, and not just because of her looks. She aroused him in ways that not even Katherine ever could, like how she let out a strangled little cry when he massaged her clit harder.

Her brown eyes went wide with the feel of his ever so obvious erection pressing into her lower back, but he wasn't moving--he was focusing on her, giving her all the attention she needed. She'd never figured Damon to be one who was unselfish in this particular department, but then again, he tended to show her a softer side everyone else believed to be a myth.

As much as she wanted to turn and reach for him, kiss him senseless, she stood there, grinding down against his sure fingers and closing her eyes tight as if it would help her to not make a sound. There was still a party going on downstairs and the door was wide open with bits of light leaking in from the hallway. They could easily be discovered and that only excited her more. Damon was, by no means, the safe brother. He lived for danger and it didn't surprise her that he was tugging her panties down where anyone who walked by could see. Elena made a nervous sound anyways and found herself nuzzling at the press of his smooth cheek against her face.

"Shhh, quiet. We can't have anyone coming up here to ruin our fun, can we?"

A part of her hated that he still seemed so casual even as he was lifting his hand to his mouth, wetting the fingers with his quick tongue before they were back down between her thighs, pressing against her with earnest. He was driving Elena crazy in every way possible and she just wished that they were anywhere but here, some place without the sounds of the party wafting up to their ears. But it was obvious that was the furthest thing from Damon’s mind. His fingers slipped back, two of them, easily sliding into her wet and eager entrance which practically begged for him. It caused a mild laugh to rise to his lips. She wanted to pout at that, but instead she shivered from the baritone sound, muscles clenching around the penetration.

“Ah, _Elena_. See,” The vampire said in that teasing voice. “You can deny me all you want, but you can’t hide what your body _craves_. God, and the things I want to give to you...” Damon curled the fingers at the imagery of her spread open in offering below him in her mind, and she let out a muffled moan that almost sounded like she knew exactly what he was thinking. His eyes flicked over to a chair in the room and he smirked, moving the digits in a quick rhythm while his thumb teased her clit. “I’m tempted to bend you over something right now, you know that? It’s not like they’re doing anything else with this furniture. Might as well put it to good use.”

“Damon--you can’t--” Her own speech was strangled and breathy with desire and she hated it, how she sounded so unfamiliar to her own ears. This is what Damon had brought her to so easily like she was just another toy to play with to him. Bile rose in her throat as she forced herself to turn her head to find any bit of sweetness on his face in the dim light. There was nothing but arousal, carnal and animal at the same time, an expression foreign to her.

Elena didn’t want to admit she liked it.

“Okay, okay, I won’t. Not right now.” His voice was still even, same as always, everyday Damon, until he leaned in, pressing his lips to her ear and letting out a soft moan as his hips bucked forward against her small body. “Maybe tomorrow night,” the man admitted in a harsh whisper, feeling the familiar elongation of his canines while he listened to her blood pumping. His fingers moved harder and faster as he thought about how it would feel to take her, to press his cock up between her legs and into her warm body. Oh, the sounds she would make, how she might cry, asking him for more. “You want that, Elena? To be bent over a desk...or a chair, or a bed?”

“God...Damon...” There was no fight left in her. She was his for now, a doppelganger doll for him to tease and own...as long as he didn’t stop. Elena thrust down onto the thick digits inside of her, then back up against his thumb which rubbed her off quicker and quicker. She was shaking against him and grabbing hold of the vampire’s free arm, her nails digging into the material of his blazer. She just needed something to hold onto to, to remind herself that this was real, that she was still there, standing on weak knees.

There was a flutter inside of her as his fangs drew across her neck, down to her shoulder in a playful manner. It made her shake harder and take an unsteady breath before she was pulsing around him with her release. Elena’s grip tightened for a moment and she threw her head back against Damon’s broad shoulder, brown eyes flickering open to stare at the ceiling, her lips agape in a soft cry of pleasure. His slick fingers were still moving inside of her, sending tingle after tingle up her boneless-feeling body. Sweet torture, that was what it was, but Elena embraced it.

It was tempting to take her in her current willing state and the vampire side of him begged him to give in. But Damon didn’t. Not tonight, it didn’t matter how ready she felt for him. He removed his hand from between her legs and brought it to his mouth to lick clean of her taste before he was pulling her underwear back into place and fixing her soft purple dress. The air smelled of Elena’s arousal and he savored it for the moment, just long enough. He knew he would have this again.

“Elena,” he whispered against the curve of her ear and she stirred like she had been in a soft sleep. She turned her head to look at him and Damon smirked at the expression of bliss that was still around the edges of her features. He had sated her and he wondered absently if Stefan had ever given her a release like that before. The thought faded as the vampire took her hand and lifted it to his lips, kissing the skin like he had after their dance downstairs, gentle and sweet.

She managed to smile after that, and to turn in his embrace, carefully touching his face with the tips of her fingers while looking into the deep blue of his eyes. Elena felt lost in that moment, like her heart was caught in her throat. How could she lie about her feelings for him? ...She couldn’t. She didn’t have it in her. And that’s why she had to pull him down into a passionate kiss, tongue tracing the outline of his lips, feeling his own sliding out to touch hers. That sweetness she had craved from Damon had returned in soft whispers of appreciation against her mouth when the kiss had concluded. Elena cherished each one, memorized them and held them close to always remember.

As much as she was enjoying the vampire’s docility, there was something else between them: his own arousal. “Damon...you...” Elena felt herself blush beneath the tresses of her hair as she glanced down. She had no idea how to offer him a helping hand, and she really shouldn’t have even been thinking about it, but he was the only thing on her mind at the current moment. Wasn’t it only right to return the favor, even if she hadn’t directly asked for it?

“No,” he said simply, more to himself than to her. “Not now. Not tonight.” Damon stole a kiss before he had the urge to take the words back. If he had anymore of her, they would both be going to a place that would be completely impossible to come back from. Letting her explore him, he would need to have her for his own, to-- The vampire closed his eyes tight, letting his instincts settle, fangs withdraw. No, he told himself once more as he opened his lids up again to see the mixed emotions on Elena’s face. Damon petted back her dark hair, leaning in to press his lips to her forehead in a move to comfort and reassure her. By the way she relaxed, it seemed to work.

“Okay,” she breathed out, arms wrapping around his neck in an attempt to pull the man back into another sweet kiss. She was beginning to get addicted to the way his mouth felt against hers, but he was moving back, out of her reach, and taking in the sight of her like it would be the last time as sadness built on his face. Elena didn’t like that look, not on him. Not at this moment. It wasn’t right. She stepped in nearer to the man, closing her eyes for a moment to compose her next words carefully. But when she opened them again, Damon was gone and yet his words were still whispers in her ears like he was a ghost beside her.

▽▽▽

After her run-in with the notoriously charming Damon Salvatore, Elena abandoned the Lockwoods' party on quick feet when she had managed to pull herself together, needing to get out into the fresh air, get out and _think_. What had happened? What had she allowed? She was dating Stefan, and yet she let Damon touch her like that, hold her and kiss her and-- She swallowed hard and tried not to run to her car, though she could barely help herself. Her boyfriend was still nowhere in sight and the elder Salvatore hadn't popped up again to taunt her so she figured she was free to go. If Bonnie or Caroline asked why she hadn’t shown up to see them, Elena would come up with some lame excuse. Maybe she had been struck with a bad headache, or she just wasn’t in the mood to go anymore.

With all the new questions of the night being held over her head, she couldn't get home fast enough. She might have sped...just a bit, but the streets were pretty much empty anyways and she made it to her house without seeing more than a handful of other vehicles. The girl looked over her shoulder as she made her way up the path to the front door, thinking that maybe someone would pop up. It wasn’t as though it was a new experience in her life, but she still jumped when she heard a car door open, almost dropping her keys to the floor. Once Elena was past the threshold, she mumbled a 'thank god' under her breath, noticing Jenna and Jeremy were absent, after all some serious alone time was in order.

Her bedroom door was shut and she was safely tucked away from the rest of the darkened house in the next moment without so much as another startle. Elena turned on some music and stripped out of her dress, throwing it onto a chair in the corner of her room without so much as a glance. She stood there in her black pumps and the startlingly intricate lace bra that didn't go at all with the simplicity of her panties, glancing at herself in the mirror. She felt like a completely different woman, though she looked exactly the same...but no, maybe her skin glowed a bit more, and her cheeks were flushed, eyes bright. She remembered this sort of demeanor in the back of her mind--when she had first gotten together with Stefan, when she felt like all the bad things in her life were beginning to come to an end.

Her face turned towards her window suddenly, hearing a subtle tap-tap-tap that she thought might have been Damon, back for part two. She imagined the smug look that would be on his handsome face, accompanying the low 'I changed my mind, Elena' before he would strip in the middle of her bedroom like he had run of the place. Her pulse beat faster at the thought and as much as she hoped deep inside that it might be real, it was nothing, it was the wind. There was no 160-something year old vampire being a peeping tom.

She reminded herself to breathe, even and steady, and she was until she thought about her boyfriend again. What if he found out? What if Damon blabbed? 'Stefan, you will _not_ believe what I did tonight. I'm not really sure if you're giving our girlfriend everything she needs. Might need to reevaluate, buddy.' The girl huffed and threw herself down onto the bed, toeing off her shoes once she was laying flat on her stomach. No... _no_ , Damon wouldn't jeopardize what they had--whatever that complicated mess might be. He was aware that she was falling for him fast, she could see that much. He wanted her to return to him. But...could she?

You can't. You have to see Stefan, she told herself. The younger Salvatore _loved_ her, would do anything and give up everything for her. Would Damon do the same?

Elena didn't want to think about the answer to that, didn't want to think that the answer might be yes. It was clear that Damon wasn't as selfish as everyone thought him to be. She was his weakness and his humanity...and so much more at the same time. With that on her mind, she slipped under the covers of her bed, too tired to do her nightly ritual before sleep. The girl glanced at her diary and was unable to make herself pick it up. If she wrote tonight, she knew what she would put down and she just couldn’t face those words on paper in her even cursive.

‘Dear Diary, I think I love Damon and I know I shouldn't.’

▽▽▽

He could still taste her on his tongue, in the back of his throat, better than the slickness of the sweetest blood he’d had in his lifetime. Damon whispered her name in the dark of his room from his bed, fingers sliding down his taut stomach towards the trail of black hair that led lower. He hadn't been able to think straight since the party, even after feeding and three glasses of quickly downed bourbon, he was consumed with thoughts of Elena. Dear, generous Elena. How she'd given herself over to him. That was _trust_. That was... He loved her, completely. It was no obsession as it had been with Katherine, this was different, _she_ was different.

She was everything he had been looking for in the world for over a century and a half. Was she the girl his mother had promised would come to him when he was still a boy, not even close to a man?

The vampire fell back into his memories of the party, each mumbled word and whimper of hers coming to his mind as he wrapped his hand around his cock and stroked himself slowly, _teasingly_. Damon planned to draw this out for as long as he could, torment and reward all at once. Isn't that how it had felt for Elena? To be dating one Salvatore and enjoying the deeds of the other? She was probably sitting at home now, contemplating it as she jotted her thoughts down in her diary.

But then again, she could have been doing something else, running her hands over every place that Damon had touched her, reliving the moment. Was his name a soft whisper on her lips? Did her fingers curl inside herself while she thought about him taking her, leaning over her small body, kissing her while she shook below him?

God, he hoped so.

He squeezed himself, attempting to halt the orgasm that was so desperate to come. No, not yet, not when he could feel her lips against his own like she was there with him, a warmth against his body and a comfort. She was beautiful in every way, pure and perfect...but not boring, never boring. Elena kept him on his toes, on the edge of his seat. She was a thriller he couldn’t get enough of, she made him feel...human. No, better than that, _more_. Something completely different. She was a sort of high and that made the vampire need her. He was becoming addicted.

What would she say to him if she was there?

‘Don’t stop, Damon. Don’t stop. I’m right here and I’m not going anywhere.’ Oh, and then she would wrap her hand around his own and help him stroke his cock, find him exactly what he needed and he would...beg in his own way, bucking his hips skyward as she laughed in his ear with utter, sexual delight. ‘Just like that... _Damon_...’

It was impossible to find a rhythm with her whispering gently in the back of his skull, but maybe he didn’t need it. No, maybe he needed it just like this, ragged and hungry, fangs bared in desperation as Elena took him over, mind and body. His control was teetering for a few moments, then completely gone and his hand was suddenly slick with his release. He should have felt renewed, but instead he felt empty as the thoughts of her dissipated in the cold darkness and he was alone.

▽▽▽

It probably wasn't the smartest idea she had come up with in her time, especially considering it involved vampires, but Elena didn't know what else to do. She couldn't skip school because Stefan would worry and aunt Jenna would get a call from the office, she couldn't go over to the boardinghouse when he went hunting because it was never a guarantee how long he would be gone, and...inviting Damon over to her house--there were countless things that could go wrong there, most she didn’t want to think about. So she asked Caroline to help. It might have counted as a big favor and did actually take a bit of convincing since she couldn’t just come out and admit her feelings to Damon to the girl, but the blonde vampire was able to get Stefan to come with her out to the woodlands of Virginia for a little hunting trip-slash-vampire-bonding-moment and she promised she would keep him distracted for as long as possible.

The rest was up to Elena and a part of that scared her.

She stared at the large foreboding door of the boardinghouse's main entrance, hand ready to knock, but frozen in place with something akin to agitation. What would she say to Damon? 'I can't stop thinking about you.' 'Damon, I had to see you.' 'I love you and I know this is right. _We_ are right.' All these words were jumbled on her tongue and she was beginning to get a headache as she thought about all the ways he could possibly react. Damon wasn’t exactly the easiest man to read...or the most sane.. She sat her head in her hands and took a deep calming breath in the next moment. "Okay...okay...you can do this...," Elena said aloud. She began to put herself back together, and just as she was finally ready to enter the large house, the door opened wide and Damon stared down at her, smile tugging at the corner of his lips, blue eyes lit up and looking more gray in the sunlight.

"What can you do?" His tone was amused as he leaned against the doorframe, watching the girl with narrowed eyes that spoke volumes more than his voice could. He knew, of course he did. She had finally come to see him. After three days, she had shown up on his doorstep and it wasn't about Stefan, it was about _him_. “Or is it more like...what can _I_ do for  _you_?”

"Damon...I...," more deep, shuddering breaths, "I wanted to talk with you." Elena tried to make it as casual sounding as possible, but as the words left her lips, the feeling of how he had touched her days ago rose to her skin, staining her cheeks with a light blush.

Damon noticed, like he noticed everything about her, but the man didn't utter another word as he swept back, allowing the girl into the warmth of the boardinghouse. After she had stepped over the threshold, he shut the door and gave a little, nonchalant shrug of his broad shoulders in the black designer t-shirt. "By all means. I'm completely free today, Elena. And...look at that, Stefan isn't anywhere to be found." Damon casually slipped an arm around her waist, escorting her into the parlor where two glasses of bourbon waited, one for each of them. He urged her to sit down on the couch before he handed her a crystal tumbler, lifting his own into a little toast as he gave a wink. The vampire reclined in his chair in the next moment and threw one leg over the other. "What's on your mind?"

You know exactly what's on my mind, Salvatore, she thought to herself, closing her brown eyes for a few seconds and then downing the liquor in her glass in one gulp. When she looked back at Damon, it was like that smug grin had never left his face. She wanted to kiss it right off of him--she wanted to do a lot of things to the vampire. "Damon, what we did was--"

"So very right," he suddenly said, cutting her off. "Don't you agree?"

She wanted to say yes, but instead Elena shook her head in disagreement. "No, I'm with Stefan and I...I can't...I can't hurt him like that. Especially not with you. You're his brother."

"Stating the obvious, Elena. And lying right to my face, I might add," Damon said with a low hum, sipping at his bourbon and sitting silent for a few seconds while he studied the rich taste. Delicious. But not as good as the girl sitting across from him. He licked his lips and went on with what he was saying, knowing she was entranced by him. "Yeah, you might be with Stefan physically, but...emotionally....you're completely distant from him. Isn't that right? You’re past the honeymoon phase, kitten."

No, she didn't want to hear those words, especially not from him: the broken man, the harsh, smug... _tempting_ vampire. She wouldn’t have Damon bring all the flaws of her relationship to the surface, he had no right. Before she knew what she was doing, she set the glass on the coffee table and stood up suddenly, turning on her heel and heading for the door. "This conversation is over. You know absolutely  _nothing_ about Stefan and I." She swallowed the lump in her throat, wanting to tell him the truth that he already knew, wanting to run into his arms and have him kiss her as gently and wholly as he had at the party. Instead, she was fleeing like a criminal from the scene of the crime.

Before she could reach the door though, Damon was abruptly in front of her with a burst of vampiric speed, blocking the way out. "Elena." Her name was soft on his lips this time, gentle and persuasive. He reached out, touching his hands to her shoulders and squeezing reassuringly as he looked into her wide brown eyes. "The longer you go on acting like this, the more it's going to hurt."

"It doesn't change the fact I'm dating your brother," she replied in a shaky whisper, unable to look at him in those tense seconds

"Then don't," the vampire said daringly.

"What?" Elena froze and stared up into those knowing blue eyes that were so controlled and focused at the moment. "I'm not going to--"

"Be like Katherine? You know as well as I and Stefan do that you could  _never_ be like her, not even if you tried your hardest. It’s not in you and that’s a damn good thing." A simple movement brought one of his hands to her face, petting her cheek softly and he was just a bit surprised as she pressed into the affection, arching up as if waiting for the kiss he wanted to give her more than anything. “If you’re not happy, then change it.” He stepped away after a moment, allowing her to leave if she still wished to. He hoped she didn't, but he couldn't have her feeling trapped in the house with him. She'd already come to see him and that...was a big step forward.

Damon wandered back over to his chair and took his seat, picking up his glass once more and finishing off the burning liquid with eyes closed tightly. When he opened them, Elena was standing in front of him, shifting uneasily on her sneakered feet, biting into her plump bottom lip, disturbing the lipgloss she had been wearing. He waited and waited, setting the old tumbler down on the oak side table, wanting to see what the teen would do on her own.

She was silent and still as a statue for a matter of seconds, then leaned in over the man to press their lips together in a chaste kiss. His words echoed through Elena's mind over and over again, knowing it was all truthful. Oh, she wanted him so bad she ached, and the vampire seemed to sense that, pulling her small form into the warmth of his lap. "Damon...Damon, we--"

He quieted her with a kiss while he wrapped his arms around her waist to hold her in closer, sensing the nervous beating of her heart. "You should be honest with him," he said softly against her sweet lips. Stefan deserved to know, even Damon agreed to that. He still wanted her as much as ever, but she needed to be able to devote herself to him. The still very human side of Damon didn't want his little brother getting hurt more than necessary, he wouldn’t let Stefan suffer like he did with Katherine. "I can wait, Elena. I've been waiting this long." He released her and she seemed reluctant to remove herself from his lap and his touch, but she did, heading for the door and glancing back at him to catch his lopsided smile.

What he had done was right, wasn’t it? Letting her go? Damon wished he didn’t have to, but he remembered something one of the servants at their estate in the 1860s had told him about their animals: if they were lost, they would always manage to find their way home. And while he didn’t like to compare Elena’s behavior to a horse or a dog because really only their base instincts of survival were the same, that fact was true. She would come back to him, to where she belonged.

▽▽▽

It wasn't the hardest thing she had ever done in her life, but it was close, seeing the expression of hurt on Stefan's face, though there was also...knowing. He knew how she felt for his brother, how she still loved him too, how it wasn't easy to let him go. She couldn't have both. She had to choose and...for some reason her heart and her head were telling her to go with the elder Salvatore. There was good in him, she had seen it over and over again, seen him come to terms with his feelings, seen him become a better man and that was everything she admired in Damon. But even after breaking up with Stefan, she didn't go to see him right away, she waited, bided her time, and didn't see the older brother except through short glances when he was present around town, usually at the Grill.

Elena felt like she needed to be ready for him...and maybe she was curious if he would go run around with some...less than admirable women--which she was surprised to notice that he  _didn’t_. He wasn’t like Stefan, and though they weren’t complete opposites--more alike than they wanted to admit--there were things to...evaluate about the vampire. He hadn’t had a normal relationship in one hundred and forty-five years, if you could even count sharing Katherine with your brother as normal. Elena didn’t and thinking of the way the woman had used Damon and pitted him against Stefan made her angry. They hadn’t deserved that. But at the same time, she had to be thankful to that vampire because if she hadn’t come around, Elena would have been a century and a half late knowing the Salvatore brothers...loving them: sweet Stefan and charming Damon.

They were practically her boys now, never again Katherine’s, and that made her smile softly and secretly to herself.

▽▽▽

After holding off for a week and a half, she couldn't stop herself anymore and dropped by the brothers’ house one night after telling Jenna she was going to stay with Caroline--yet another favor she would have to pay back. She headed down a hall at the boardinghouse that she had rarely ever stepped in, but she knew it from watching Damon. It was where his bedroom was, on the opposite side of the building from Stefan’s. She'd never seen it before and she was curious, had sometimes spent days wondering what it looked like, what was in it, what kind of memories it was filled with--if any.

Elena found herself holding her breath, going from door to door until she found the one that light leaked out from under. She knocked tentatively, of course Damon would know it was her from the sound of her beating heart, which she felt would thump right out of her chest in that moment of anticipation. She heard the old floorboards creak behind the door and then slowly it was opening and as she stepped back, Damon peeked out, a smug smile on his face while he stood there in only a pair of black pajama bottoms that hung tantalizingly low on his body.

"Good evening, Elena," he said calmly to her, like he had no idea she had broken up with his brother days ago.

She managed a smile and bowed her head a bit. "I'm not...interrupting, am I?"

"Of course not. I was just gonna relax a bit before hitting the hay. Come in." The vampire pulled away and opened the door wider, allowing the small teen access to his bedroom. He laughed when she was awestruck, taking it all in from the piles of books by the nightstand, to the large bed, to the on-suite bathroom. "Right, you've never seen my...humble little...quarters before."

He shut the door behind them as she stepped in further on careful feet. Suddenly though, her attention was back to him. "Sorry, I shouldn't be--"

"It's okay, not like I mind it." Damon shrugged and headed over to the bed where the cream colored covers were peeled back and he took a seat on the edge, taking a tumbler of blood from the nightstand and finishing it off in one gulp. He proceeded to lick his lips and gums clean of the taste while he admired the woman standing in his sanctuary. She was just as beautiful as she had been at the Lockwoods’ party in that luscious purple dress.

As he sat and relaxed, she couldn't help but feel out of place in the too large room with her heart beating faster than ever and Damon's eyes fixed on her with curiosity. "I did it," she said with a deep breath, clutching her hands together at the line of her hips, eyes flicking down to the dark floorboards. "Stefan understands and he didn't..." Elena let the sentence drop as she looked up again and Damon was suddenly gone from her field of vision. Not again, she thought, but then she turned and was pressed into his body, hands grasping at his biceps by instinct. She attempted to pick her sentence back up, but the man was kissing her gently, silencing her. Apparently there was nothing else to say in his mind.

He let his hands explore her freely this time, sliding over the soft material of her sweater until he was holding her head and tipping it back so he could deepen the kiss. Her moan was muffled and high against his lips and when his tongue pressed to hers, she made the same noise again to his joy. Her warmth and her scent filled him and it wasn't teasing this time. That's right, Damon told himself, this is what you've been waiting for all these decades. He kissed Elena harder and she returned the action with the same amount of fervor, hands pressing against the chilled flesh and muscle of his bare chest.

This felt just as right as it had at the party, in that dark room, and she knew he wasn't going to disappear tonight, to leave her with whispers and the last faint feel of his touch. No, tonight...tonight she wanted everything and he was so willing to give it to her. Elena almost whined when he pulled his lips away from hers though, but then he was picking her up and carrying her over to the large bed to deposit her gently as if she were a fragile thing. She didn't mind, not when he resumed kissing her as their hands worked off sneakers and socks together, throwing them to the floor and out of the way. Every lingering touch they shared, every glance, every time they stayed in the same space for a moment too long...it had all come down to this. Her in his bed with their lips pressed together while they explored each other for the first time.

"Elena, god...," he mumbled against the skin of her neck when he leaned down, tongue working slowly over the sensitive flesh. Damon couldn't fight it when the familiar ache in his gums arose and his canines elongated, the whites of his eyes darkening to red. But he pulled back and focused on getting her sweater off and out of the way. Skin. He needed more skin, to press their bodies together and feel every heavenly inch of her.

She stared up at him with such childlike curiosity in her eyes...and he realized. She was seeing his vampiric features for the first time. Elena lifted a hand to touch his cheek, to run her thumb against the veins under one eye and he shuddered from her gentle kindness.

"Damon, are you alright?" The girl was lifting herself from up off the bed as she noticed the tremble of his body.

"I'm fine." He looked at Elena and she met his gaze completely without any sort of fear. Damon smiled at that, leaning back in to kiss her once more. "Better than fine. Amazing and perfect and--mm..." The vampire hummed at the feel of her teeth nipping at his bottom lip, giving a playful little tug that only turned him on more till his red and blue eyes were dark slits full of arousal and hunger. His hands reached out to touch the pale skin of her stomach as he pushed her back down onto the bed. Her heart was beating a quick rhythm in his ears, pumping that blood faster through her body. He couldn't help but lick his fangs in delight, even if he _wasn't_ going to be biting her.

She shifted beneath him, reaching a hand back to unclasp her bra and he easily removed it from her, flicking it over his shoulder carelessly before he delved in, touching his lips to a nipple. Of course it was an action she had felt before, but there was something so impossibly heated about the way Damon did it, licking a firm line up the areola and the nub of flesh, then biting at it gently. Elena couldn't help but cry out and push up into him, eyes staring into the space of the ceiling above them. "Damon..." Her heart beat faster and faster and his mouth continued to tease her, bringing her to a higher plane of arousal.

His fingers danced their way down her stomach to the waistband of her jeans where he flicked open the button and slowly pulled down the zipper. He switched his attention to the other nipple in the process, while his hand dipped under her panties to touch the soft, brown curls. A groan came to Damon's lips, and he felt Elena freeze under him from it. He lifted his head and raised a brow at her. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just..." She coughed and blushed, but he continued, pulling away from her breasts to slip down her body.

"You like it, I know, babe." He shucked off the jeans and looked at all the bare skin she was offering him. He felt the familiar buzzing of hunger in his body and he couldn't push it back. Not with the constant thrumming of her heart, her skin flushed with embarrassment and excitement. God, how he wanted her. Damon slipped a hand down to give himself a squeeze before moving to push off the pajama bottoms. He noticed Elena's eyes going wide at the sight of him nude, no briefs having been under the pants. He was already hard and eager for her, but her pleasure came first, and he was certainly going to show her that.

The vampire crawled between her legs that spread for him and he leaned his head down to suck gently at her clit through the fabric of her underwear. She was suddenly writhing and crying out, pushing hands roughly into the unkempt locks of his hair. Every part of her was intoxicating, so really, could she blame him when he growled and delved in, ripping the thin fabric away and leaving her bare? Elena didn't seem to mind, not when he was using his tongue to flick roughly at the bundle of nerves while his fingers explored the wet folds.

He wasn't gentle like Stefan, no, Damon was...unrelenting and absolutely perfect. Feeling a thick digit slip inside of her, she clenched and bucked her hips up, pressing into the heat of his mouth and the teasing of his tongue. Elena moved her hand and gripped the sheets of his bed, pulling at them as though the action would get her more of what she wanted. "Damon...oh...," she let out with an exhale and in reply, he nipped at her clit and curled his finger. "Ah!" She was falling apart and she knew it. The build up of her orgasm was hard to miss, how she grew more aroused by the second, slicking Damon's finger and easing up from the penetration.

She managed to open her eyes and shift so she could stare down at the vampire, and the sight of him...it only turned her on further. He was laying such attention on her, laving her clitoris with impeccable skill from years of performing the action. No, no, she didn't want to think about the other women Damon had been with in his lifetime, not when they were together...not when they felt this way.

He could sense a change in her and he moved himself back up her body, kissing at her lips. He groaned when her tongue snaked out to lick up the taste of herself residing on the sweet flesh. "I'm wondering if I should...let you finish now...or wait." Damon smirked while she swallowed and blushed beneath him, grinding up into nothingness as if she could summon forth some kind of friction. He observed for a few spare seconds, seeing her hand slip down her stomach slowly. "...Or you could let me watch you." She moaned in reply when the digits met her engorged little clit and he sat back to enjoy the show, ignoring his own sheer need.

Elena was even more beautiful when she was coming undone. She seemed to enjoy playing with herself, or maybe it was just the fact that Damon was watching with a pleased smile. He touched a cool hand to her smooth thigh and drank in the shudder that wracked her body as her fingers pulled herself open. Damon was sure that in all of his years he had never seen a sexier sight than the woman he loved, stretched open, fingers teasing at the wet lips of her entrance. He groaned and she slipped a finger inside carefully, waiting until it settled before she was rubbing her clit with her other hand.

She'd never done anything like this before, but Damon incited a sense of adventure and confidence in her and she felt good, hearing his reactions to her little “show”. They pushed her forward as her orgasm edged closer and closer. Her eyes had settled shut and her fingers moved in a quick, perfect rhythm...but then, one of Damon's own digits was slipping inside of her and she fell apart, muscles clenching and fluttering around them. A cry left her lips and she screwed her eyes closed tighter, letting her sudden release overtake her.

The sound of her heart pitter-pattering had Damon licking his lips in hunger, both for the blood that coursed through her system and the gorgeous body laid out before him. He might have been a bit...hurried when he pulled his finger from her and then pushed her hands away, but she didn't fight the movement, no, she smirked very softly at him. At that, he had no choice but to lean in and taste her mouth fully once again. "Elena...babe...you should stop being so tempting..."

"But where's the fun in that." she asked with a pout, running her fingers through his dark, soft hair. She kissed him back and pulled his hips down against hers, pushing her sensitive clit against his hard member and causing herself to shudder. She was ready for him, completely, to give herself over and have him claim her. Maybe not...through a bite, not yet, it would be too much too soon, but eventually. She knew, eventually she would let him have that. She focused on the feel of Damon though and listened to his groan, watched those dark, vampiric eyes, how they studied her. She blushed suddenly and he kissed her in return. "Damon...oh, Damon...please..."

There was a quick shift and he was pressing his cock inside her welcoming body, feeling the way she strained ever so perfectly around him. Damon cursed under his breath, pushing forward slowly, dropping his eyes to watch himself disappear inside of her. No fantasy could compare to this, nothing was as flawless or phenomenal as having Elena underneath him, crying out his name in reality. The girl relaxed and laid boneless against the bed until he was completely inside of her, then she was arching her back and whimpering as if she could get more from him. Definitely a nice sight, though she seemed so... _deprived_.

"Damon, ah..." Elena stared up at him with narrowed, lust filled eyes, focusing on the curves of his lips as he bucked his hips forward.

"I don't think I'll ever get tired of you saying my name like that." She seemed to ignore the comment, turning her head so her cheek was pressed down into the pillow, a whine on her lips. Damon planned to leave her tired and sated before the night was through, and while they had so much time left, he would rather get started. His hips started moving in a quick, hard rhythm, pounding in  and making each of Elena's breaths come out as a pant or a moan. Her body was sublime around him, clenching and demanding silently for him to keep going, to take more and more of what she was offering. He would do so happily.

Damon moved his hands to grip her wrists, holding them above her head and noticing the way she twisted them just slightly, testing his hold. "Oh no, I'm not letting you go anywhere, beautiful, not until I'm done with you." Her arms went slack and instead she started to push back against him with her hips, attempting to meet each motion with fervor. Intoxicating, gorgeous creature. He moved his body quicker and quicker and from the way she crooned, she was ready for another orgasm. Damon's lips curled into a killer smirk..

Elena wrapped her legs tight around Damon’s middle as he spoke. She was barely listening to the words though, more focused on the movement of his body, the reverberations of skin against skin over and over again. She had never felt this way before...never had this. Being stretched out and open for her lover--it felt good, though that could have just been because of Damon. He was an amazing man, always humming with a sort of energy, so in tune with himself. He didn’t hesitate and that was how Elena knew she was completely safe. So she allowed herself to become completely lost.

He trembled above her and his face...he looked so open and unguarded. Even more strikingly beautiful as his tongue flicked out to lick his dry lips that were red and bruised from their kissing. He glanced up at her and she felt as though she had somehow been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. It was absolutely ridiculous, but she blushed hard and felt Damon suddenly releasing deep inside of her. His grip loosened and then he was letting go of her wrists; Elena immediately moved her hands to touch his face, down to shoulders and chest, around to his back while the vampire purred from the affection.

Damon hadn’t felt this good in a long time--he was _whole_. He never wanted to abandon her sweet body, or her gentle touch...the way she whispered his name. He kissed her lovingly, felt that little tongue slide out to demand entrance that he gave suddenly and without hesitation. Elena, I love you, he thought, wishing he could push the words forward into her mind in that moment. A part of him was still afraid to say it, after all, when he had confessed his love to Katherine...she had turned around and deceived him. He didn’t want to lose Elena, so he just kept holding onto her, feeling her hips move in a comfortable grind.

“You’re beautiful...” The girl mumbled against his lips and he laughed softly, brushing back her auburn hair with a questioning noise coming from his throat. “I know, you’d probably prefer...sexy...and you’re that too...but right now...” Elena nodded and pulled away to take in his face again. Yes, beautiful was a good word to describe Damon Salvatore in that moment, as much as he might not have liked it.

“Well, you’re gorgeous...,” he punctuated the word with a peck to the corner of her mouth. “Cute,” another kiss. “Spectacular...adorable...amazing...charming...” He laid kiss after kiss and all the while, Elena couldn’t stop smiling and laughing softly.

She was experiencing the sugar sweet side of Damon, the side that wasn’t for appearance only...the side he barely ever showed. She saw it in his kisses at the party, but this was completely different. Strange how Damon could seem like two distinct people: the vampire with the attitude and...this, a lover in every sense of the term. “Damon,” she called softly, holding his face between her hands and pressing their lips together, molding the flesh into a sweet exchange. He responded quickly with a hum, content sounding, while Elena’s tongue slid out to find his, discovering it almost immediately.

They laid there like that for quite some time, legs tangled together, hands reaching out to stroke each others’ skin, moaning and sighing contentedly. Elena’s excitement was a hum in the background, still very much there, though not demanding attention. She would have been fine with never moving, with keeping the vampire buried inside her and close. But Damon was moving soon enough, pulling out of her and going to rest against the headboard. She turned her head to stare and was ready to give the man a pout until he smiled and motioned for her to come into his lap. Elena scrambled slowly out of the jumble of sheets, crawling on hands and knees till she was pressing her back to the warm expanse of his chest. “This is nice,” she mumbled, feeling Damon’s hands on her body, working ever so carefully.

“I agree,” he said as he kissed her ear, dropping a hand between her legs to rub her clit in a slow buildup, making her purr. There was no need to speak, he knew what she needed and how she needed it. Damon had had more than enough experience with women in his lifetime, though none of them were like Elena. His touch became less teasing, more eager and her hips were bucking up against him. Her hands gripped his thighs, short nails digging into his skin, harder, scratching at him until her tension broke and she was giving herself over again in release.

Elena sighed softly, turning her head and pressing her cheek to his chest while his fingers ran through her mess of hair. She whispered his name and got herself a kiss to her forehead in return. He petted her gently, spoke softly about how he felt for her until she was falling to sleep, curled into the warmth of his body like he was her shelter.

▽▽▽

She wasn’t aware of what time it was, besides  _early_ , but...the bed was empty. At first she had the silly thought that she had just lost Damon on the other side of the mattress, but Elena turned her head to look and saw nothing but the white of the sheets. “Damon...?” She sat up and pulled herself from the bed, walking on unsteady feet towards the bathroom. No, he wasn’t there either. The girl hummed, going towards the closet to pull down one of the man’s designer button-ups and pull it over her nakedness so she could continue her search with at least a sliver of decency.

When she was safely covered, that was when she noticed him, standing outside on the balcony through the closed french doors, his skin so pale in contrast to the dark. He looked...peaceful, though a bit withdrawn. Elena had seen Stefan like that before, when he had a lot on his mind to think about. She figured the thing that was bothering him was _them_. Elena didn’t want to interrupt, but at the same time...she couldn’t let him be. She stepped carefully to the doors and opened them as quietly as she could, letting the cool Virginia night come alive around her and send goosebumps up her skin.

“Sorry I woke you up,” was the first thing to come out of his mouth and he didn’t even turn to look at her.

“Is something...wrong, Damon,” she asked, ignoring what he had said with a little frown on her face. She stepped towards him, coming close so she could wrap her arms around his neck and pull him down into a gentle kiss. “And don’t make anything up. I’ll know.” Elena smiled, hoping to break a bit of the ice, but the vampire’s face was still blank. “Damon--”

“I don’t understand why you chose me. I mean...I want you and you know that...but I don’t think I really expected you to go through all of this. I’m not the safe brother, Elena.”

She paused, thinking about that--she didn’t know why she loved Damon, she just knew she did and that was a feeling she didn’t want to question, not when it was so right. “I could say the same about you... You could have any woman you want, and yet...you chose me. I’m not special, I’m just a girl! I don’t have a perfect body or--or much experience in things...” Elena felt herself blush as she hung her head, picking at the hem of his shirt she was wearing. But then Damon’s fingers were under her chin, pulling her to attention before he leaned down to kiss her gently. She felt a ‘because I love you’ in that kiss and it warmed her heart. “Damon...you don’t have to be afraid,” she whispered softly.

There was no point in denying it, because fear really was gnawing at his heart...or had been, until she looked at him with a smile, moving her arms down around his waist to give him a hug. She’d embraced him plenty of times before, but this was different. Now he was returning the action, burying his face against her neck and pulling the girl in closer. He wasn’t able to hold it back any longer. “Elena, I love you.”

“I know, Damon. I love you too.” She wanted to stay like that with him forever, without any sort of care, without any worry, but soon Elena pulled back just a bit and took another kiss from him, soft and sweet. “Now, will you come back to bed?” She laughed as his cocky grin showed itself. Yes, everything was good--no, better than good. Wonderful. Sure, they had plenty to work through, but that was normal for relationships...even if theirs was as far from normalcy as one could get. She was...content with Damon and he had gotten what he always wanted: someone to love him, to take time for him and no one else, someone that wouldn’t use and abuse him.

The teen grabbed his hand, entwining their fingers as she tugged the vampire through the open french doors, which he closed behind them. They were both crawling back into bed in the next moment, pulling close together on the large mattress under the warm blankets. Elena rested her head on his chest and found she was still smiling like a crazy person. There was so much she wanted to say to Damon--her boyfriend--but words didn’t seem right in that instant, so she just let herself be held.

▽▽▽

With a giant yawn and a cat-like stretch, her body spreading out in the warmth of Damon’s bed, she woke, thrilled to find there was actually sunlight streaming through the french doors. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes with one hand while the other reached out absently for any chilled skin in the vicinity. Ah, there, an arm just a couple of inches away. Damon was still in bed this time. Thank god. Elena bit back another yawn and rolled over to see him, met those piercing blue eyes that were already open, staring at her as if she were a piece of art that needed to be contemplated for meaning. “Morning,” the girl whispered to him, giving a soft smile. “What...time is it?” It felt like noon, but she couldn’t be too sure, time always seemed to elude her at moments like this, the morning-afters of nights she had so happily spent making love to her boyfriend. The only difference was now said boyfriend was Damon, not Stefan.

“Almost eleven...” Damon took her hand in his own and entwined their fingers, giving a squeeze. She really was too cute when she was tired and sluggish, looking like she just wanted to curl up and fall into dreamland again. He smiled. “I figured since it’s Saturday you would only get cranky if I woke you up.” She smacked him in the chest and a laugh came to his lips. “It’s the truth though, isn’t it?”

“No,” she mumbled, pouting. “...Okay...maybe a ‘ittle bit...” The girl closed her eyes once more and pulled herself in close to Damon, wanting to warm him up even though it wasn’t exactly required for him. He just felt so nice against her, their bare skin pressed together so naturally. She was so lost in him that she didn’t even notice her stomach giving a little grumble of hunger. But Damon did and began to pull away. “No...,” Elena whined, feeling a bit childish, but she didn’t want the man to go anywhere, not just yet.

“I know, I know.” And he leaned down to press their lips together in a gentle kiss that slowly turned hungrier until he was over her, pushing her small body down into the mattress. As his tongue flicked against her own, he could feel those hands sliding up his body, reminding him of how she had learned him the night before. Elena’s fingers ran through the dark head of hair, fisting the strands to keep him close. Damon knew they needed to stop before this turned into more sex, he needed to feed, she needed to eat. “Okay, babe, shhh... Later, we’ll get back to it later,” the vampire said, pulling her warm hands from his body and setting them down on the covers. “ _Later_.”

Elena let him go this time, though still pouting, and admired the view of Damon slipping from the bed. He really did have just as nice of a body as Stefan, though the elder brother was more toned, the younger...sculpted. She couldn’t help the content little sigh that came from her mouth. She had never felt more lucky in her life to have had the chance to fall in love with two wonderful men.

“Breakfast or lunch? ...Or...brunch?” Damon slipped into his pajama pants before glancing over his shoulder at his lover, a smirk crossing his face.

“Something good...,” she said before burying herself under the covers of the large bed, hiding from the sunlight as though _she_ were the vampire.

“Alright. Something good then.” He left Elena in bed and headed down to the kitchen of the boardinghouse, getting hit with the smell of fresh coffee right away. It made him salivate; there was nothing better than coffee from the french press...well, except the beautiful Elena naked in his bed, waiting for him to return. He’d take that above coffee any day of the week. Of course, coffee meant that Stefan was awake and in the vicinity too. That was fine, it wasn’t like his baby brother could fight with him on Elena’s choice. She was a big girl and she had made her decision.

“Good morning, Stefan,” Damon said with a cheery tone in his voice, entering the dining room where his brother sat at the table, flipping through the morning paper and nursing a cup of coffee. “Or wait,” he stopped for a moment, thinking, “It’s more like noon now, right?” Stefan looked up once and stared at his older brother blankly before going back to the paper and taking a sip from his mug. Damon smirked and just continued on his merry way, cutting into the kitchen and thinking about what he could make his lover.

Something simple, but not _too_ simple. Something he had made just for her. Something that was...delicious.

He went over to the fridge and began pulling out ingredients, setting them out on the counter as he whistled. Hell, he was happy and he would whistle if he wanted to, no matter what weird face Stefan was probably making out in the dining room at the moment. The vampire took down a skillet and turned on the stove, beginning to cook...though his whistling stopped as he felt his younger brother behind him. “Cook your own brunch,” he mumbled, watching the food carefully. “This one is already--”

“Damon.” His tone was serious, almost blank sounding, as clear as the expression on his face. “I know, you’re happy. You got what you’ve wanted for a century and a half, took what I wanted. Just like I had done to you with Katherine.”

The elder Salvatore froze, staring forward as if he could see the particles of dust dancing through the air. Him getting with Elena hadn’t been about revenge--it had been about love. He loved her and that was why he wanted--needed her. “I don’t give a fuck about Katherine, Stefan. I hope that bitch falls on a sharp piece of wood and gets offed.” Part of him wanted to hit his little brother, to shake him and make him understand, make him see why Elena was so important to him. “And I didn’t _take_ anything. Elena made her own choice without any sort of help from me. It’s not like she doesn’t still love you.”

They stood there silently, Stefan had barely moved as Damon went back to cooking, carefully running back and forth between cutting board and skillet with just a bit of vampire speed mixed in. He had remembered his own days with Elena like this, when she wouldn’t want to move and the younger Salvatore would coax her out of bed with food. It worked every time. But now those were just memories. Perfect memories that he would remember for the rest of his life, but not with pain.

The omelet Damon had made for his lover was finished, it was something good, she would be pleased. He glanced over at Stefan for just a few seconds, then reached to pull a plate from the shelf, sliding the omelet onto it in the next moment. “She does. Still love you. Just because she’s not _in_ love with you..” Damon set the plate down a bit too hard and practically threw a fork onto it before he stalked off towards the basement to the blood cooler. He tossed the lid open, staring down at the bags, browsing like he was trying to find the perfect wine for a romantic evening. The vampire grabbed one, squeezed it a bit and let the cooler fall shut. When he turned, Stefan had returned, standing mere inches from him.

“Just take care of her.”

“Obviously,” he replied with just a bit of venom in his voice that he himself wasn’t exactly sure where it came from. “I wouldn’t let anything happen to her.” Damon stared down at the blood bag in his hand, tossed it up and then caught it, sensing Stefan was now gone, he didn’t know where and he didn’t know how much he cared. His brother had taken care of himself for a century and a half, he could do it now.

▽▽▽

When she heard the door of the bedroom open, Elena tossed back the covers and sat up, stretching out and giving a yawn. She wasn’t even a bit embarrassed that she was showing bare breasts to Damon, he’d tasted and explored her body so thoroughly the night before that there was no way any modesty could be left between them, just a comfortable feeling, a hum of excitement and utter happiness.

Seeing the tray the man was carrying, she perked up and smiled. The food was absolutely delicious smelling and when he had set everything down on the nightstand, she noticed it was a monster of an omelet. She couldn’t help her mouth watering while she crawled towards him. “For me,” Elena asked softly, sounding like an unsure child.

Damon leaned down and pressed his lips to Elena’s, taking a sweet kiss before he mumbled, “Just for you.” It was like he couldn’t hand the plate over to her fast enough, she grabbed it from him and immediately began to scarf down the food, making happy little noises as she did so. Maybe he should have made two if she was that hungry. But when she had finished the omelet, she handed the plate and fork back, declaring she was full. “...You really liked that, didn’t you?” She nodded in response, looking so innocent in his bed...besides her breasts showing and the top of the auburn curls between her legs.

The vampire swallowed. Later, he reminded himself. “Stefan’s gone,” he mentioned offhandedly, pouring a bit of the contents of the blood bag into the glass tumbler he had drunk from the night before. He swallowed the thick liquid and felt the burn of hunger be relieved a little. But Elena’s eyes were on him, wide and brown and...there was a frown on her face? He glanced quickly--yes, there was. “Elena...he’ll be fine, it’s not like he’s gone off to burn up in the sun.” At least Damon hoped not, that would have been a little melodramatic, especially for Stefan.

“I know...it’s just...I still care for him. I don’t want him to get hurt.” Elena fell back in the bed and pulled the cream and black covers up to her chin, using them as a sort of security blanket as she tried not to think about how she had made Stefan’s heart fall to pieces. It had been inevitable though. She had to break one brother’s heart, but she hoped that at least she had done it as gently as she possibly could have with the younger Salvatore.

“He’s been hurt worse. Trust me, I know. I did it. Now,” and Damon leaned over her, smirking and looking menacing, though his expression was tinged with playfulness, “get up and get dressed before I’m tempted to keep you in bed all day.” He winked and purred, watching the girl shudder a little and make a sort of squeak.

“Damon...” She darted under the blankets, quick as a cat, moving to the opposite side of the monstrous bed and peeking up a moment later.

He lunged and caught her with perfect accuracy, trapping her warm body beneath him. Her heart was pumping with an adrenaline rush that only made her seem so much sweeter. Damon wanted her, feeling so starved even with a glass of blood sitting nearby. A growl rumbled in his throat and he let the girl go, allowing her to scurry out from under the bedding. He sat there by himself, breathing, lips trembling while he fought back his hunger for her and Elena allowed him to take his time.

Damon eventually looked up and turned his body, smirking at his girl who had taken to standing by the bathroom, still naked and looking as though she enjoyed the freedom that came with not hiding anything. “Hey,” he said with a purr, face back to normal.

“When you’re done eating...come and join me in the shower.” Elena winked and then turned on her heel, unable to stop herself from grinning wide at the glimpse of arousal she saw from him. There was no better feeling in the world than this, even knowing it was going to be a very long Saturday for her. She had a perpetually 20-odd-years-old lover to attend to, after all, with all his flaws and perfections, but he wasn’t lost anymore, he was hers and no one could disagree with that.

**Author's Note:**

> Written March 2011.


End file.
